Category Archives: Current

The results of Turn Two in the club Back of Beyond campaign are now in:

The British Museum – Force March = one step back ( step 6)

The Chinese Warlord – Force March = one step forward (step 4)

The French Expedition – Victory = one step forward (step 4)

The Mad Baron – Force March = stays put (step 6)

The Japanese Column – Defeat = stays put (step 6)

The Bolshevik Shock Brigade – Force March = stays put (step 6)

The Xmas break meant a lot of forced marching was unavoidable but there are two games scheduled for Turn Three already, so plenty of action to look forward to next month. The Chinese Warlord and French Expedition are now neck and neck, with the other forces trailing behind, but anything can happen in the Back of Beyond!

Initial reports are coming in of a major defeat for the Japanese Flying Column of Colonel Sushi Miyagi by the French Trans-Asia Expedition of Commandant Henri Lostagaine. Although details have yet to be confirmed, it would appear that the Japanese have suffered a significant setback, with losses in men, equipment and heavy weapons. The French have now renewed their advance to Urga leaving the Japanese to lick their wounds and gather reinforcements from local Chinese Bandit factions.

Wessex Wargamers Winchester has always had a long established and enthusiastic naval wargaming interest, with a wide range of periods and scales featuring in various club games over the years.

These have included Napoleonics in both 1/1200 and 1/2400, with a complete refight of the Battle of Trafalgar all the way down to one on one frigate skirmishes. We have also played ACW riverine games in 1/1200th scales and ironclad clashes including the Battle of Lissa in 1/2400th scale. There is further scope for some Ancient and Medieval naval gaming but as yet this is an area that we haven’t really explored.

A firm favourite is World War Two using Victory at Sea, with many club players owning rival fleets of Allied and Axis warships in 1/3000th scale. One club event is a U Boat vs Convoy multiplayer battle organised by the resident naval enthusiast, Dickie, which has been replayed several times and is always really hard fought. There have also been a few coastal warfare games in 1/600th scale, which is definitely an area in which there will be more games in the not too distant future.

We have even stretched to some none too historical but very enjoyable VSF naval gaming in the form of Aeronef, including a club multiplayer Scramble for Africa campaign. We’ve also been known to play a few pirate games using Galleys and Galleons in 1/450th scale. There is even the occasional game of piratical boarding actions in 28mm, with rival pirate gangs skirmishing across the decks of scratch built pirate ships.

If you are interested in naval wargaming, drop us a line and drop into the club for an evening, where we will be happy run something nautical!

There’s a big multiplayer game of Knights of the Sky, the club WW1 aerial dogfighting game, on the 24th January. The game will have up to six a side and will be a free for all, last man standing dogfight, with victory for each pilot being measured by the number of enemy aircraft damaged or destroyed.

The game will be set in Early 1917, so the RFC / RNAS will be able to fly Sopwith Pups and 1 1/2 Strutters, alongside RE 8’s, Spad 7’s and Nieuport 17’s. The Huns get the Albatros DIII and the Roland DII, together with two seaters like the Roland CII. The French have the Nieuport 17 and the Spad 7.

There are plenty of planes to use if anyone doesn’t have their own, although there’s still time to glue together an Airfix or Revell biplane kit from your Xmas stocking. So, drop by the Yahoo group and sign up for your chosen side if you would like to join in, as places are running out fast.

It’s that time of year again… get out the plastic reindeer, the knock off Made in Taiwan elves and the old random figures you forgot about down the back of the sofa, for some festive firefights over at Dickie’s yuletide grotto. Ho Ho Ho.

This turn there’s a lot of forced marching going on and only one battle to be fought. The Chinese Warlord, Bolsheviks, British Museum Expedition and the Mad Baron have all decided that it’s far too cold to try to fight anyone else and have found a nice warm yurt to hole up in for the winter.

They will all be FORCE MARCHING in the general direction of Urga, with the outcome to be decided in due course by the D6 of doom.

The Japanese Flying Column and the French Expedition are, however, made of sterner stuff so will be battling it out to see if they can get ahead in the race to the campaign objective.

The French have ATTACKED the Japanese, so expect to see a fiendishly cunning defensive strategy deployed by the Japanese master of artful cunning himself, Colonel Kagemusha, who they can employ this turn as a Special Character.

The Wessex Wargamers Winchester participation game – Get to the Compound! – won the second place award for Best Participation game at Warfare 2016. Congratulations to Colin, Caesar, Alan, Andy and everyone else who helped to playtest or play the game on the two days at Warfare this year.

We can now reveal the results of Turn One of the Back of Beyond campaign.

Brigadier (Retd.) Cholmondely Warner of the British Museum Expedition and Wei Phat Mac, the Chinese Warlord, both won their battles so will now advance one step closer to Urga and are, therefore, five steps away from the campaign objective.

Comrade Colonel Igor Tubugerov of the Bolshevik Shock Brigade and Colonel Sushi Miyagi of the Imperial Japanese Flying Column, both got a right thrashing from the aforementioned forces and so remain in their starting positions, six steps away from Urga.

Unfortunately, the Whites have had to withdraw from the campaign, so I have determined that they have retreated back to Sinkiang to fight another day. I’m hoping that they may pop back up again later in the campaign when they are able to take part once more, if only to join the big battle at the end.

As a result, their erstwhile opponents, the French Citroen Kegresse expedition of Commandant Lostagaine, won a victory by default, meaning that they are now five steps away from Urga. This seems a bit jammy but is also a sensible outcome, as the Whites vs. French battle wasn’t resolved.

The Mad Baron force marched this turn and so I rolled a D6 to find out what happened as a result. I rolled a 3, which means the Baron stays put where he is, six steps away from Urga. So, there are now three forces neck and neck in the lead and three forces bringing up the rear in a cloud of dust!

The Wessex Wargamers Winchester participation game at Warfare this weekend is Get to the Compound! – an automotive post-apocalyptic car chase using the Gaslands rules. The team have put together a fast moving game which really captures the action, with players manoeuvring to blast each other’s vehicles to scrap metal, while racing to get to the end of the track in true Mad Max style. The game will also be running tomorrow, so why not drop by and take part.

This year Wessex Wargamers Winchester will be running yet another participation game at the Warfare show in Reading on Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th November.

The game is currently being play tested to destruction, which is quite appropriate as the theme is an automotive post-apocalypse race across the wastelands, using a range of converted toy cars and a new set of rules currently in development, which you will be able to find out much more about at the show.

Please drop by and say hello to Colin, Alan, Andy and Caesar, who will be running the game over the two days. There will also be the opportunity to take part, so why not give it a go!